Want to learn how to bridge this gap between designers and developers in your company? Read on to learn how you can empower your design and development teams to collaborate more effectively.
Designers and developers are like peanut butter and jelly—you can’t have one without the other. Not if you want to make a great project (or sandwich). While designers dream up the user-facing aspects, developers focus on bringing those elements to life with code.
That sounds like the perfect duo, right? Here’s the problem: There’s often a big communication gap between these two groups that impedes collaboration and creates unnecessary bottlenecks in project workflows.
Want to learn how to bridge this gap between designers and developers in your company? Learn how to empower your design and development teams to collaborate more effectively.
Understanding the roles: designers and developers
Designers focus on the front-end visuals. They’re the creative geniuses that cultivate the look and feel of your website. This includes aesthetics and functional layouts that make the user experience seamless. They’re also responsible for staying updated on the latest innovative web design trends to keep things fresh.
Have you ever visited a website that was so aesthetically pleasing and intuitive that it felt made just for you? It was likely the brainchild of a talented web designer—but they couldn’t have executed the idea without the help of a developer.
Developers are the technical brains responsible for bringing those creative ideas to life. Simply put, they write the code that makes the design work as intended. Their role can include a lot of tedious work, like building the core structure of a website or page, configuring back-end servers and databases, and incorporating visual features.
If a website is compromised and users’ information is leaked (leaving them vulnerable to credit fraud or other types of fraud), developers often shoulder at least some of the blame. All that’s to say, it’s a large undertaking.
While designers are often considered “creative,” while developers are considered more “technical,” both share the same goal: to take an idea and transform it into a functional, aesthetically pleasing, user-friendly website or product.
Common challenges in collaboration
Cultivating an environment that facilitates collaboration between designer and developer teams is well worth the effort, but several challenges can hinder this goal. These are some of the most common:
- Communication barriers and misunderstandings: Designers and developers speak different “languages.” Designer jargon isn’t always going to make sense to a developer, and vice versa. This can create situations where things are wrongfully interpreted.
- Differing priorities and processes: Designers are more focused on a page’s visual appeal, while developers are more focused on making sure it works correctly. Because of this disconnect in priorities, designers and developers often have very different work processes and different ideas about how things should be done.
- Balancing technical constraints vs. creative aspirations: Not everything a designer comes up with is realistic or even possible to execute. This can cause friction when developers point out technical constraints.
- Lack of understanding of the big picture: If developers lack clarity on what exactly they’re building and how users will interact with it, they may not be able to execute a product that meets designers’ expectations.
- Unclear timeline: Both designers and developers need clarity on what deliverables are expected and when. If the timeline is vague, projects can quickly become delayed.
- Unexpected project scope changes: Adding new or more complex features that weren’t originally agreed upon can require developers to spend much more time coding. Similarly, redesigning parts of a project that were already approved can put a big strain on the design team. Both situations can lead to reduced team morale and broken timeline commitments.
- Not having a single source of truth: Teams without a fully integrated design system will experience a more substantial disconnect between designers and developers. This can make it difficult for both parties to understand the project scope and constraints.
4 strategies for effective collaboration
1. Establishing clear communication channels and protocols
Designers and developers are often on different wavelengths, so establishing open communication channels is more crucial than ever. When they’re treated as two separate teams, you’ll likely run into more issues where people make incorrect assumptions, leading to more revisions and longer project lead times.
You can accomplish open communication by setting protocols about exactly when and how to communicate with one another. For example:
- Establish multiple checkpoints at different stages in the project cycle to get feedback and discuss changes. This might mean at the beginning, the end, and multiple times in between.
- Ensure designers share their designs as they’re created so developers can flag any that might not be realistic within the project’s scope.
- Encourage kind and respectful communication, especially when giving constructive feedback.
You’ll also need a single channel of communication that works for both teams. Ideally, you want them to all be streamlined in one place where they’re easy to follow.
Many designer and developer teams use email as their primary form of communication, but there are a few problems with this. It’s way too easy to accidentally leave someone out of an important email thread or hit “Reply” instead of “Reply All,” before you know it, half of the team is completely out of the loop on what’s going on.
Not only that, but some people only check their email once or twice per day. If a designer sends an email at 12 p.m. asking whether an element can be created, the developer may not even see it until the next morning at 8 a.m. if that’s when they check their inbox. This creates bottlenecks that impede project workflows.
For this reason, a platform with instant messaging functionality is preferable. Slack is one of the most popular, but there are plenty of others to choose from (more on this later!).
2. Regular cross-functional meetings and updates
We know what you’re probably thinking: No one likes mandatory company meetings! But the truth is, these meetings are one of the most valuable opportunities to communicate important announcements, give project updates, share feedback, and ask questions.
Not only that, but it’s also a great setting to discuss other important topics such as:
- New guidelines or policies: Any changes in company policy are best communicated in person to the entire team at once.
- Long-term plans and goals: This is especially important to discuss at the beginning or end of each new quarter or fiscal year.
- Cybersecurity measures: If you’ve recently experienced a data breach or other security issue, it’s a good idea to discuss new safety measures being implemented and resources for employees on how to prevent identity theft.
- Implementing new tools and software: If you’re implementing new tools in your company workflows, cross-functional meetings are a chance to explain how they’ll work and benefit both designer and developer teams.
While unnecessarily long or frequent meetings can be a huge bore for everyone, it’s often easier to emphasize pertinent communication in a face-to-face setting rather than relying on phone or email.
3. Cross-disciplinary training sessions
While their knowledge sets differ drastically, designers’ and developers’ work intertwines very closely, which is why it’s important for both to understand, at least on a foundational level, what the other does.
Designers don’t necessarily need to learn how to code, but they should have a basic understanding of:
- Basic HTML and CSS: HTML and CSS are the coding languages used to build the visuals or “front end” of a website. It’s helpful for designers to understand how these languages work together and how they’re structured.
- Front-end JavaScript: Understanding the basics of JavaScript, which is used to create interactive elements like forms, is helpful for designers because it allows them to understand how elements might interact on a page.
Similarly, developers should have a basic grasp of:
- Color theory: Color is one of design’s most important—and complex—aspects. Developers should know the difference between warm colors, cool colors, and neutrals and the emotions they can evoke.
- Basic layout principles: Certain layouts have become the “norm” in design, like top navigation and sidebars on the right. It’s fine to deviate from these standards sometimes, but there needs to be a specific purpose for doing so. Knowing the standard layouts and why they’re essential can help developers make better decisions when coding pages.
Hosting regular cross-disciplinary training sessions is a way to achieve these objectives. Suppose this isn’t possible with your company’s internal structure. In that case, an alternative solution is to incentivize your employees to complete online training, such as courses on platforms like Udemy or Coursera.
4. Implementing tools and technologies that work for both teams
One of the best ways to improve designer and developer collaboration is to use technologies that make life easier for both.
The right tools can facilitate open communication and teamwork and ultimately speed up projects. You’ll lose less time on never-ending email threads and have one constant reference point for reviewing feedback and juggling projects.
Here are a couple of things you should look for in collaboration tools for designers and developers:
- Compatibility across browsers: Not everyone in your company will use the same browser. Ensure the tools you select are compatible with all major browsers (Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Safari, etc). It’s a plus if the tool comes with desktop and mobile apps for iOS and Android.
- Integrations: It helps if the new tools you implement integrate well with what you already use in your workflow. Integrations between tools can make collaboration more seamless by reducing redundancies that would otherwise slow projects down.
- Tools that solve multiple problems: Try to implement tools that are more of a comprehensive solution. It’s often easier to train your team on comprehensive tools rather than several single-use platforms, and it can also be an excellent cost-saving measure in the long run. Google Workspace is one of the most well-known examples.
- Version control: Version control helps teams manage and track changes made to source code over time. If a mistake is made or an element needs to be reworked, version control allows developers to “turn back the clock” and review earlier versions of a page’s code. This can reduce wasted development time and help keep projects on track.
10 tools to facilitate collaboration
There are many different tools, and finding the right combination that works for you will likely take time. That said, below are a few to consider if you’re starting from scratch:
- Slack is a cloud-based communication platform that works great for large and small teams. It offers instant messaging (1v1 and groups), file and media sharing, and voice/video calls.
- Signal is an encrypted communication app offering instant messaging and voice/video call features. It uses your phone’s data connection to send messages, so you can avoid SMS fees. Signal is a mobile app on iOS, Android, and desktop.
- Asana is a product and project management platform built for cross-functional work. It helps teams decrease duplicate work by increasing visibility across departments. You’ve probably already heard of—or maybe even tried—this platform, which is used by well-known Fortune 100 companies, including Amazon and Johnson & Johnson.
- Basecamp is an app that combines project management and cloud communication. Each project has its own page, with a message board, Kanban board, to-do list, shared files, and more. You can also schedule automatic check-ins to collect feedback and keep the communication flowing.
- Notion is a productivity and project management solution meant to serve as an all-in-one workspace for your company. You can build pretty much anything you want within Notion, but the biggest downside is a steep learning curve, and setup can be a long and tedious process.
- Hive is a project management software with proofing built in. Designers can attach their files to be reviewed and set up rounds of approval for developers and other collaborators. Reviewers can add comments and annotations or request further changes before approval.
- ProofHub is a proofing and team collaboration tool meant to serve as one unified workspace for all your projects. It includes forms, a project manager, a daily agenda, and file versioning.
- Filestage is a proofing platform that’s mainly meant to handle the review and approval process. Designers can use it to share images, videos, or documents, and developers can then use it to share websites or pages in progress.
- Miro is a multipurpose collaboration tool for teams. It’s most commonly known for its mind-mapping feature, useful for brainstorming, goal-setting sessions, and full-blown project planning. You can also use it to create Kanban boards, product roadmaps, and flowcharts.
- Google Workspace is a suite of communication, collaboration, and productivity tools. It’s one of the most widely-known platforms for email and cloud storage and is a great choice for teams of all sizes.
Fostering a collaborative culture
The most effective designer-developer duos often stem from work environments that prioritize collaboration between individuals and departments. If you want to start fostering this kind of collaborative culture in your organization, here are a few steps you can take:
- Encourage an understanding of each other’s roles: When there is a stronger mutual understanding of different roles, how they contribute to overarching goals and their difficulties, it is easier for employees to empathize with each other.
- Host regular team-building activities and cross-training sessions: Team-building activities allow employees across departments to connect with each other on a more personal level. These cross-training sessions can also help teams better understand each other.
- Create a safe environment for sharing opinions and ideas: Fear of judgment, rejection, or ridicule can hold employees back from sharing their raw views. Great ideas often emerge when employees feel empowered to make suggestions (or even push back on decisions).
- Recognize and celebrate collaborative successes: Don’t underestimate how much acknowledging even the smallest wins can boost team morale. Taking the time to celebrate successes—especially those that resulted from a collaborative effort—will go far in encouraging future collaboration.
Bridge the gap between designers and developers for more seamless workflows
Designers and developers will always need to collaborate. The more effectively they can do so, the smoother projects will be.
To facilitate collaboration, prioritize clear communication, cross-functional meetings, and training, and implement systems that make working together easier for your team. Don’t be afraid to invest in tools and software that make it quicker and easier for your team to communicate and get feedback from one another.
The work doesn’t stop there, though. Once you’ve “bridged the gap,” it’s essential to always be willing to adapt as your team’s needs change. When fostering a collaborative workplace, there’s always more to learn. Check out our posts on how remote design teams can work together and tips for a collaborative design process. Use creative assets from Envato to streamline the process and bring beautiful designs to life.
